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I have often heard it said that "faith is a gift." While I suppose this is true, it doesn't really distinguish faith, does it, from - say - an unredeemed Barnes & Noble gift card, a birthday message from a friend you've not seen in years, or the smile of the stranger who's just held the door for you. Isn't one of the lessons of stewardship season this: that that
all of life is a gift, barreling at us from the heart of a loving God?
What we
do with the gift is another issue altogether. Twigs and stalks of grass are gifts to a starling, but it's up to her to weave these into a place to live, and from which her chicks will fledge. I've come to see my own faith this way: it's where I live, and it's what I have assembled over time mostly from personal encounters, words, music, sacraments and wisdom which have been gifts rather than custom orders.
The lives of the saints are like that: strands waiting to be discovered, clasped and woven into the nest of our own living faith. This is the guiding principle of our "12 Lives"
Sunday Forum series this year. This is why we so deliberately remember saints and souls each November, and why we baptize on this coming Sunday, All Saints Sunday. So in thanksgiving for a few of my own saints, living and dead, I've plucked a few strands of found wisdom from my own nest. Perhaps one or two will be of use to you in your own construction:
"We are all saints, not because we are
nice but because in our baptism we have put on Christ and asked him to conform us to his life of love, struggle, sacrifice and vindication, which is the pattern of our lives and the life of the people of God."
Gretchen Wolf Pritchard,
Offering the Gospel to Children
"I must not be the dry, bloodless reproduction of a model, however perfect. God desires us to follow the examples of the saints by absorbing the vital sap of their virtues and turning it into our own life-blood, adapting it to our own individual capacities and particular circumstances..."
Pope John XXIII
Journal of a Soul
Remember this, especially you Anglicans and Episcopalians. They [the saints], particularly those pre-Reformation characters, are every bit as much yours as anyone else's."
Professor Denys Turner
Horace Tracy Pitkin Professor
of Historical Theology
Yale Divinity School
"Man can embody truth but he cannot know it...the abstract is not life. You can refute Hegel, but not the saint."
William Butler Yeats
"Letter to Lady Elizabeth Pelham"
"Like an experienced traveler, a saint can guide you along the path of suffering. Benefiting from their insights is one reason to read the lives of the saints....for those struggling with their church...it's good to remember that some of the saints did the same."
Fr. James Martin, SJ
My Life with the Saints
"For Christ plays in ten thousand places,
Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his."
Gerard Manly Hopkins
"As Kingfishers Catch Fire"
See you in church, saints!
The Rev. Patrick Ward
Associate Rector
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Festival Holy Eucharist
7:45 a.m., 9 a.m., 11:15 a.m.
Requiem for All Souls with Holy Eucharist
6 p.m.
TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, & FRIDAY
Noonday Prayer
12:10 p.m.
WEDNESDAY
Choral Evensong
5:45 p.m.
THURSDAY
Holy Eucharist with Prayers for Healing
12:10 p.m.
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Turn Clocks Back!
We return to Eastern Standard Time as of 2 a.m. this Sun., Nov. 5. Remember to "fall back" and set your clocks back an hour on Saturday night, or you will be really early for church on Sunday!
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Small Great Things: ART's Book Discussions return!
Sun., November 5
12:15-2 p.m.
Ferris Library
The Anti-Racism Team will host a discussion on the compelling Jodi Picoult novel and on the very current issues of race, equity, and our common life it raises. Once you start reading, you won't be able to stop!
More...
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Fauré Requiem for All Souls
Sun., November 5
6 p.m.
The Trinity Choirs will perform the Gabriel Fauré Requiem, a choral setting of the Mass for the Dead, during the evening Eucharist on All Souls Sunday. More...
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The Conversation Project: End-of-Life Care
Wed., November 8
11:30 a.m.
Forum
Lunch served; please RSVP
Join us for lunch with Rev. Rosemary Lloyd of The Conversation Project,
an ordained Unitarian Universalist minister and a graduate of the Metta Institute for Compassionate End-of-Life Care.
More...
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| Memorials |
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Memorial Service for the Rev. Margaret "Peggy" Gunness
Thurs., November 9
11 a.m.
Christ Church, Zero Garden Street, Cambridge
All are welcome to a Celebration of Life and Holy Eucharist in remembrance of the Rev. Peggy Gunness, the first woman to serve as a priest at Trinity Church (1987-1991). Peggy was loved and admired for her warmth, compassion for all, pastoral care, insightful sermons and faithful service.
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Memorial Service for George Packard
Sun., November 12
6:30 p.m.
Hancock Church, Lexington
All are welcome to attend the memorial service for George Packard, father of Daniel and Annie Packard and former husband of Louise Packard. George's strong spirit, joy for living, and love for his children have been a source of great inspiration to many.
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ABB Symposium: Dr. Nancy Krieger on the Fight for Health Equity
Sun., November 12
10:15 a.m.
Forum
As part of this year's Anne Berry Bonnyman Symposium, "Is Inequality Bad for Our Health?" Dr. Nancy Krieger will speak on "Scientific racism, embodiment & fighting for health equity: Black Health Matters."
More...
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12 Lives Forum:
Bishop Guy Erwin (ELCA)
on Martin Luther
Sun., November 19
10:15 a.m.
Forum
In the 12 Lives Forum series, guest speakers (including academics, clergy, activists and artists) will introduce us both to powerful personalities from faith traditions and to the transformative role these men and women have played in their own faith and lives.
More...
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Last Week's
Sermon & Forum |
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Miss last Sunday, or just want to experience the sermon or Forum again? We invite you to listen or watch on our website:
Last Sunday's sermon:
by the Rev. Patrick Ward, Associate Rector
Last Sunday's Forum:
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Outreach Volunteer Orientation
Sat., November 18
1-4 pm
Forum
Are you a member of an outreach ministry? If so, join us for Outreach Volunteer Orientation, a 3-hour introduction to the concepts and values that underpin our out- reach work, like building relationships across differences, understanding restorative practices, and more. More...
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Pine Street Inn Feeding Team
Tues., November 21
4:30 p.m.
444 Harrison Ave., Boston
Join us on the third Tuesday of each month to serve dinner at the Women's Inn and the Men's Inn. More...
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Stitching in the Spirit
Sat., November 18
9:30-11:30 a.m.
Angel Room
This monthly gathering is open to stitchers from all disciplines, as well as those who want to learn. Join us to make prayer shawls and warm garments for those in need of comfort within Trinity and across Boston. More...
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Is Inequality Bad
for Our Health?
3rd Annual Anne Berry Bonnyman Symposium
Sat.-Sun, November 11-12
Trinity Church Boston
How does systemic racism contribute to health disparities, and what can we do about it? Only a few seats are left for Saturday's keynote and workshops! Learn More & RSVP...
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Symposium Guest Preacher: Bishop Dwayne Royster
Sun., November 12
9 & 11:15 a.m. services
Bishop Royster, Pastor of the Faith United Church of Christ in Washington, D.C. and Political Director of People Improving Communities through Organizing (PICO) will offer the sermon as part of the Bonnyman Symposium. More...
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Northern Harmony Folk Singing Workshop & Concert
Sun., November 12
Workshop 1 p.m.,
St. Andrew's Hall
Concert 3 p.m., Church
The unique world music choir ends their 2017 tour at Trinity, bringing harmonic traditions from cultures around the globe in a workshop and concert. Learn more about the workshop
here and concert
here.
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